Before I get all crazy, I just want to say that this movie gives art house films poetic justice. We Need to Talk About Kevin is a film told in images, giving the dark poetic feel of the story arch. This masterful film star’s Tilda Swinton as the mother, John C. Reilly as the father and Ezra Miller as Kevin. Overall, this is a film about “Mommy Issues.” Kevin is a severely disturbed child who throughout his whole life, has given his mother problems. Despite his problems and her failure to connect as a mom, the mother still tries to love him unconditionally.

The logline states:

“When her 15-year-old son’s cruel streak erupts into violence, his mother wonders how much blame she deserves for his actions.”

This film explores the evil mind of Kevin and shows you the dysfunctional relationship he has with his mother from birth to adulthood. What is more intriguing to me is that in real life, we always learn as much as possible about people who commit acts of evil, aside from their motive. But, we never really learn about the people closest to them like their mothers and what they go through during the aftermath. Throughout the entirety of the film, we experience the mother’s guilt as she explores the notion that if she is to blame for Kevin’s actions. This film is a disturbing point of view from a mother’s eyes, witnessing the natural creation of a psychopath from birth to his teenage years, alluding one of mankind’s biggest debacles: nature versus nurture.

In a nutshell, nature versus nurture is an argument that states it is a person’s that DNA affects their development as opposed to their upbringing and life experiences that shape their actions. This theme is the mystery throughout the film, just like Kevin’s murderous rampage. The film does a beautiful job, not revealing too much about what is disturbing the mother. All you know before the climatic point is that she has a horrible time raising Kevin.

This film is very poetic, showing images and flashbacks that tell the story, balancing her reality during the aftermath of Kevin’s actions. During the mother’s reality in the film, we see that everyone in society hates her for raising a devil child. We see her hide from people who she knows, a stranger slapping her across the face, shunned by her neighbors, and co-workers vandalizing and ridiculing her.  The imagery of this film tells the story in the best way possible because it leaves the audience to create their own conclusions of why Kevin did what he did without telling us exactly why. This may be very confusing, but it all makes sense at the very end of the film, which is why it gives us poetic justice.

Tilda Swinton is absolutely brilliant in this film because her performance reflects the evil that can be rubbed off onto others without even subconsciously, even knowing it. Ezra Miller plays a disturbing Kevin that captivates your curiosity to watch the film to the very end. This is because Kevin is the mystery that we are trying to solve. Last but not least, John C. Reilly is lovable as ever, making Kevin and the mother, likable characters. From a film standpoint, I really enjoyed the color in this film, which is a nod to its astounding cinematography. This was complemented by its score, which built tension for the mother during the entire film. We Need to Talk About Kevin is a perfect example of a character study. I want you to watch this film and tell me whether it was the mother’s fault that Kevin acted the way he did. I believe that she did a pretty good job of being a mother despite what evil was conceived from her. I believe that it wasn’t her fault at all. That is why I want to know what your opinion is.

I believe that nature wins this argument over nurture in this mind-bending, thrilling tale of mother and son.

Remember,

“The Zos Knows”

-David Zosel 

If you want to support my writing and for me to be able to create more content you can make a donation here: Venmo

The point of this film is that if you are in a relationship with someone, don’t cheat on your other half because someone is going to die. Bad things happen when you cheat. It’s all fun in games and all until someone gets hurt and overdoses on prescription drugs. The Loft is an erotic mystery film, and it reminds me of Reservoir Dogs in a sense that the film is about how five guys try to figure out who killed this mysterious girl that showed up in their secret loft that they only have access too.  There is a killer in the group, and you will never suspect who it was. Cheating is hugely tempting, but it is never worth the pain and suffering for the others around you. So why do it? This film will make you think twice about even cheating on your other half.

The logline states:

“Five married me. One deluxe loft for secret sexual encounters. And one murder with five prime suspects.”

The film centers around five best friends who are all sleazy just like the story itself. What I really liked about this film is how they all seem to turn on each other throughout the story despite their friendship. This is all due in part to the fact that they aren’t really friends, they all just use each other for their own selfish gain. These guys are all slimeballs. Why would you all make a pact to cheat on your wives with this secret “babe lair” that you have all vowed a brotherhood oath too? We all know that this is going to lead to some weird shit. Most importantly, men are competitive, and suddenly, this simple idea has become a competition.

This film is very thrilling because I thoroughly felt that I was on the edge of my seat, trying to figure out who was the killer. Let me tell you, I am the master of disaster at figuring out the resolution in 95% of films that I watch, and I had no idea who killed this girl in the movie! If you want to watch an excellent mystery flick, then this film is for you.

All in all, if you’re in a relationship with someone, why would you ever be so disrespectful by cheating on your partner? If you have the audacity to cheat on someone, the person who will be the most torn up, defeated and destroyed at the end of all the aftermath is going to be you. This film teaches you that lesson. It also shows us how it will affect our loved ones and all of the other people around you in your life.  This is because your other half is going to be devastated, your “fling” will become jealous of your other half, and your friends will not have your back at the end of the day because what you are doing is completely wrong. Most importantly, if you think about cheating on your partner, someone is going to die because that is just what happens.

Bad things happen to bad people who do terrible things in this world. So, don’t cheat.

Remember,

“The Zos Knows”

-David Zosel 

If you want to support my writing and for me to be able to create more content you can make a donation here: Venmo

We have been taught that humans have five senses. Touch, feel, taste, see, and hear. When you lose your ability to hear, you are put at a significant disadvantage when a psychopathic killer decides to torment you. Hush is a high-concept slasher film, meaning that the premise is simple; what if there was slasher film with the protagonist being deaf? I have decided to not go into too much detail about the movie, but instead, I would like to talk about these three things. First, it is a huge disadvantage to not have the ability to hear. Seeing this film will make you realize that it is something that we take for granted. Second, the dialogue in this film is unique compared to anything that you have ever seen before. Last, seeing versus hearing. If a gun was pointed to your head and if someone had forced you to choose the ability to hear versus see, what would it be?

The logline states:

“A deaf writer who retreated into the woods to live a solitary life must fight for her life in silence when a masked killer appears in her window.”

This film makes us realize how important hearing is in our lives. Our ears give us the ability to know when we are safe or if we are in danger. From a primitive survival standpoint, hearing gives us self-awareness. The psychopathic killer in this film just toys with Maddie, the protagonist of the film like a cat-mouse game that you have never seen before. It is cruel and just downright sick. The film has interesting chemistry between the protagonist and antagonist because it is interesting to see Maddie, a deaf writer living in the woods in solitude and how she lives life as a deaf-mute person. Yes, she is mute, as in she doesn’t even grunt or scream like a deaf person can. On the other end of the spectrum, the antagonist killer is also exciting to explore as well because who on earth would torment someone with a disability? Why does this person do that? Are psychopaths really that psycho to the point where they have no sense of right and wrong what so ever? I’ve seen a lot of movies where there are killers, but some killers have a set of rules where they don’t kill old people, women, children, etc. Well, apparently you have no set of rules if you are a psychopath.

I need to point out that this is a sound designed savvy film because it switches from the perspective of a deaf person to the ears of the viewer, teaching us that the ability to hear is a great advantage.

I have seen many films where the main character speaks only 15-35 lines. So, how do you have a film where the lead doesn’t talk? Visual storytelling is at its best in this film because that is the only way to tell the story. I believe that there is only one scene where two people are speaking to each other. Other than that, communication between characters is through text, sign language, and subtitles.

Moreover, visual storytelling is the key to this film’s brilliance because movies are stories told in pictures. There is a point where the audience finally gets to hear what the voice in Maddie’s head sounds like, and it is a moment worth waiting for. It was by far my favorite part of the film.

A person who doesn’t know any English could watch this movie and have the same level of understanding as you and I could. That is how brilliant the level of visual storytelling is in this film.

Now, if there was a gun pointed to my head, and I had to choose the ability to see and hear, what would I choose?  After seeing this film, the answer is straightforward. It is the ability to see. It is a considerable disadvantage to lose one of your senses, but the ability to see is the last resort line of defense that the processes brain to signal that danger in front of you. Yes, I am speaking in terms of survival. This whole film is about survival. If Maddie were not able to see, she would not have survived throughout the entire film. The movie would have been finished in 30 minutes, making it a mediocre short film. I do not think a blind person could have been able to put up a fight in a mismatched survival situation. There are also a lot of personal reasons why I would choose vision over the ability to hear, but from a survival standpoint, this film has fully cemented why vision is more important than hearing. How can you attack someone if you can’t see them?

This film is a great high concept movie. I have never been into horror films, but this film has opened my eyes to this genre for the first time in my life. This movie is like a five on four power play in hockey, and the main character scored a short-handed goal to win the game. That is how exciting this film is. Just seeing someone overcome a disability to survive was very empowering to me, showing me that anything can be accomplished if you have the right attitude. This is because the worst limitation in life is a bad attitude.

Hush, was recommended to me by someone that works in my building and I gave it a chance to only find out that I absolutely loved it. I am totally hooked on a genre of movies that I have written off for my entire life. That is why I am writing this blog, so I can expose people to awesome films like this one. If you have a movie for me to watch, then I would love for you to reach out to me and give me a suggestion.

What can I say? I am doing this is all for the love of movies, right?

Remember,

“The Zos Knows”

-David Zosel 

If you want to support my writing and for me to be able to create more content you can make a donation here: Venmo

Jeremy Carson, a Creative Director, based in LA, wrote an article of why you should challenge yourself to make 30 ads in 30 days with 30 different brands. This sounded like a fun challenge. For today, I chose UPS, the shipping company. I’ve been encouraged to do an ad without words, making this is my first attempt at such a challenge. Hopefully, I did a good job and you understand it.   Here is ad 25 of 30.

What do you think?

Remember,

“The Zos Knows”

-David Zosel 

If you want to support my writing and for me to be able to create more content you can make a donation here: Venmo

TOMS Finds a New Purpose.

The founder of TOMS Shoes, Blake Mycoskie, went on The Tonight Show to promote the company’s latest cause for the second time in three months. Since his first Tonight Show visit, Mycoskie is continuing his efforts to reposition TOMS business model by creating a new primary focus on gun violence.
Donating five million dollars to March for Our Lives, Everytown for Gun Safety, and Moms Demand Action, these have been the first step for TOMS’ brand repurposing. Then the company journeyed cross-country to motivate consumers to use their voices to send 750,000 postcards to Congress.

The switch is no passion project. It’s a dangerous move to transform a brand to save a company in financial turmoil, which is a gamble for TOMS.

TOMS is working with Bain and Company, a strategy consulting firm, to make this transition effective. The partnership is part of a new trend where big companies will hire consulting firms for successful brand repurposing.

TOMS is smart to take a local approach to social issues, whereas in the past, they addressed more global issues. The brand can’t follow the latest fad or fashion like it has in the past five years. TOMS fell out of its original business model to conform to industry norms. This hurt the company because they obliviously became a for-profit brand rather than being the purpose driven brand that most know and love.

TOMS is in uncharted waters for purpose-driven brands. The future will hold many uncertainties for a brand which started off with a purpose, that lost its purpose, and now has repositioned with a new meaning.
With their big platform, TOMS wants to take on significant issues throughout the world. Giving shoes to people in impoverished countries, tackling homelessness in Europe, and now gun violence in America.

Actively rallying their consumers to join their brand in tackling these issues through repurposing their brands could be the future for companies like TOMS.
Women love mobile games, making advertisers rethink tactics.

Now is an excellent time to consider adding mobile advertising through rewarded videos to women to your creative agency’s media strategy.

Studies show 65 percent of American women from ages 10-65 play at least one mobile game daily. What is even more astonishing is that 49 percent of all U.S. gamers are women. Here holds the future for creative agencies to create effective tactics to advertise to women to sell products successfully.

The answer to this opportunity lies within rewarded video ads, which offer some value in exchange for watching the video. These videos bring astounding engagement rates, 3.4 times higher than other mobile video advertising.

Another fact is 79 percent of women are more likely to make in-app purchases while playing. To sum it up, there is now a new strategic tactic that creates women of all ages participating in mobile games, a high engagement with rewarded video ads, and a more effective platform for women to shop while playing.

What creative agencies need to take account for when concepting a reward video ad is to make sure the content resonates with the viewer.

With the analytics of these studies showing that this new tactic is trending in an upward direction, look for brands and creative agencies to become early adopters in creating rewarded videos for in-game advertising.

Nike to reinforce their views on pregnant athletes.

Historically, when female athletes decide to have children, Nike has pulled out of their endorsement contract. After a significant backlash, Nike is now finally addressing this issue.

There have been many years of ad campaigns for female empowerment, contradicting their contractual sponsorship agreements with women. Blind to the public eye, this issue has hit a boiling point and athletes who have further spoken up about this topic, making waves to make a difference.

Nike said it would waive performance-pay reductions for 12 months for athletes who are having children. They will also add terms reinforcing the policy for women in their contracts.

Nike’s proactiveness has created a ripple effect with other companies.

Their new effort to change its pregnancy policy will include protection in contracts. Nike has pioneered a new movement which has influenced companies such as Altra, Nuun, and Brooks Running to follow the path of contractual support for pregnant athletes moving forward.

Remember,

“The Zos Knows”

-David Zosel 

If you want to support my writing and for me to be able to create more content you can make a donation here: Venmo

Molson Coors Finds Purpose in Reducing Carbon Footprint.

Without Barley, there’s no beer. This is why Molson Coors, one of the world’s biggest beer producers, is taking the initiative to help barley growers create more sustainable agricultural practices.
Buying hundreds of thousands of tons annually, they are taking action by installing weather stations and soil moisture probes across farms in Montana, Idaho, and Colorado. This is to help farmers understand the weather impact on their crop conditions. Barley is a sensitive crop needing the right amount of heat and water. Otherwise, the quality will be poor, or there will be no barley at all, which means no beer. Molson Coors is creating this sustainability through their partnerships with The Nature Conservancy, and Showcase Barley Valley to explore more sustainable practices.

Molson Coors financially incentivizes to pay their farmers more to align with their growing practices. This program will continually help improve on several sustainability areas to reduce carbon footprint.

Bretton Putter, CEO of Culture Gene, Elaborates on the Importance of Brand Purpose.

Culture-driven leaders know that profit purpose business is dying and everyone is missing it. Bretton Putter, CEO of Culture Gene, a company culture consultancy agency, says that purpose matters and here’s why. Companies who have a purpose give their employees meaning in their line of work. Making impactful goals for your employees brings overall better satisfaction in the workplace. The conversation about living a meaningful life and doing good for others is a rising issue that is here to stay. Hence why businesses need to find their purpose to create good. Studies have shown there is a push toward purpose-driven brands, and for companies to get it right. For example, Fortune 100’s Best Companies reported that 85% of people surveyed find their work has special meaning. Research has also shown that employees who found work meaningful are 69% less likely to quit their job within six months. Moreover, companies struggle to answer the “purpose” question, and this needs to change to keep up with the times, not only for consumers but for employees as well.

63% of Consumers Prefer to Purchase from Purpose-Driven Brands.

Close to two-thirds of global consumers who were surveyed say they prefer to purchase brands that align with their values. They would instead buy a brand that stands for a purpose, reflecting their beliefs and will avoid companies that don’t, according to Accenture Research. These same people believe protesting and boycotting brands can make a difference in company behavior. The demand for brand purpose is a rising issue for marketers today, a hot topic trend that will unlikely cool off. Historically, companies have been avoiding societal issues, whereas leaders in today’s industries are starting to speak up to give their brand a purpose. Nike, Gillette, and Dove are just a few to name when it comes to speaking out to rebrand for a purpose. Each of their messages has been met with positive or adverse reactions. The mixed responses have resulted in higher product sales or a loss of loyal customers. Either way, brands that boldly speak out on societal topics may be the future of giving brands a purpose.

Remember,

“The Zos Knows”

-David Zosel 

If you want to support my writing and for me to be able to create more content you can make a donation here: Venmo

CRACKING THE CODE OF BUYER PERSONA

Consumer behavior has become even more prominent. Marketers have tendencies to overlook simple questions. Forum for the Future, a global sustainability non-profit focuses on answering these questions to create social impact. We live in an ever-changing world of marketing, and it’s vital that we understand our buyer’s persona. Purpose-driven brands such as Nike are hacking persona-based marketing tactics, a trending philosophy that has made a resurgence. So, what can we learn from them?

NIKE TAKES ACTION TO DESIGN A BETTER WORLD

Taking on a new responsibility, Nike has created an initiative to guide the future of design with its new social venture, Circularity. This new open-source design guide was created for designers across the apparel industry with a common language for designing products geared towards social good for the environment.

Nike’s design team believes that design can change the world. They are on track to strengthen sustainable material palettes without constraints, further creating change.

Overall, the concept of Circularity is to open-source it for collaboration.

They are currently executing this tactic with the creation of an app called MAKING, a platform for consumers and designers to collaborate.

MAKING was created as a convenient tool that evaluates materials from the basis of environmental impact areas. These include waste, energy, water, and chemistry. With the information provided, designers can make products that will help the world’s environment.

FORUM FOR THE FUTURE’S DEVELOPING COLLABORATION PROCESS

For over 20 years, Forum of the Future has been working in partnership with brands to accelerate the shift toward a sustainable future.

“What is the problem, and how are we going to solve it?” An adage that has been around forever and overlooked, FOF addresses this question to develop purpose-driven brands. Their goal is to sway consumers to purchase sustainable products.

Dr. Sally Uren, CEO of FOF, believes the challenge to collaboration is the difference between vision and action. Their purpose is to bridge the gap by building a collaboration process.

FOF finds its successes by promoting honest conversations with clear boundaries to create an active collaborating effort to solve the business problem. To be effective, highlighting the necessity of each organization is imperative.

By enabling a safe space where value creation can be discussed, this method is the first step for participants to begin the collaboration process in a private setting. The motivating factor is the result because it creates recognition of individual roles. The process brings key brands and individuals to the table. They are calling out roles, position, and influence bringing power to participants that will connect brands to consumers.

Dr. Uren points out that no one asked Apple to create smartphones. But, Steve Jobs had the vision to make the world a more accessible place. The difference between Apple and most brands is that Apple takes action with their vision through imagination.

There is a lack of imagination that counteracts the collaboration process. Apple’s vision helped create a straight path for more consumer benefit, and that is what FOF is implementing for other brands.

Practicing FOF’s collaboration process over time will enable sustainable purpose-driven brands to thrive under their developing method of collaboration.

Dr. Uren believes that pioneering the collaboration process; consumers will begin to purchase alternative sustainable products. But, no product is the same, and it only starts by asking the right questions.

APPLYING BUYER PERSONA TACTICS

One method doesn’t fit all. Brands need to know and connect with their consumers. Nike is already executing on its mission with its Circularity initiative with MAKING. FOF, on the other hand, has begun to apply some of these methods.

For FOF to head in the right direction, they need to apply the correct buyer persona tactics effectively. Understanding consumer behavior and using the proper strategy will be difficult, but it is crucial they find a way to execute through taking action at their crossroads with their vision.

FOF needs to apply these three buyer persona questions to their collaborative discussions:

What is the first thing my customer thinks about in the morning?

What is the last thing my customer thinks about at night?

Why?

And they need to do it for different demographics to improve their wide variety of purpose-driven brands.

Each client has a different demographic that needs to be addressed in FOF’s collaborative process through the four perspectives of the buyer persona. These include competitive, spontaneous, humanistic, and methodological personas.

FOF has the challenge of applying the right persona to each brand they work with, whereas Nike needs to focus on the humanistic buyer persona.

Humanistic buyers are drawn to emotion, needing more information than spontaneous and methodical buyers. The humanistic buyers can become loyal and repeat customers when marketed to correctly.

Nike and Apple know how to crack the code of buyer persona tactics and understand the importance of social good for their chosen consumer. For FOF to be successful with their innovative collaboration process, they need to apply buyer persona tactics effectively with their clients.

Remember,

“The Zos Knows”

-David Zosel 

If you want to support my writing and for me to be able to create more content you can make a donation here: Venmo

There is nothing that I absolutely love more than culture shock. A person who is one hundred percent out of their comfort zone, just struggling to survive. But, what I love more than that is how people can make the best of their unfruitful situation. A Stand Up Guy teaches us that no matter how bad life can get, you absolutely need to make the best of what is in front of you. This is a comedy worth watching because this is a  Mafia gangster film like you have never seen before.

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The logline states:

“When his outrageous open-mic standup comedy routine goes viral, low-rent mobster-in-hiding Sammy gets a lot of attention he seriously doesn’t want.”

Sammy Lagucci is a wise guy- loveable loser who has the dilemma that most mobsters have; keep your mouth shut or be a “rat.” The reason why he chooses to be a “rat” and enter the FBI Witness Protection Program is because of the love that he has for his daughter. This dimension of his character helps the audience connect with Sammy. Without the emphasis on his concern for his daughter’s safety, Sammy would be just another loud mouth, a wise guy that we have seen time and time again. I mean, who wants to leave Brooklyn and go live in the middle of the boonies in Wisconsin?

The best part of this film is the clash of cultures, Italian mobster meets small-town Wisconsin folk. Slicked backed hair, 800 dollar suits, and fancy lunch meats meet plaid, honky tonks, motorcycles and midwestern accents. Sammy and his new found situation are as different as night and day. They go together like water and oil, which makes for a hilarious combination for wonderful laughs. The dynamic of the film is quite intriguing because it is fascinating to see how these small town people react to such a “big town” personality.

What I loved about Sammy Lagucci was how he didn’t try to fit in with the people in his new environment. He stayed true to himself being the fish out of water that he is. Through stand-up comedy, he found his niche in a small town. This guy went from running with the Mafia to running with a Hells Angel’s type of gang. It just goes to show that no matter how different you are, you can fit in just about anywhere just as long as you continue to be yourself. Sammy teaches the audience that it is okay to be yourself because who cares if people think that you are weird; what is being normal anyway?

Side note: There is a fantastic cameo appearance in this film. Once you identify who this actor is, you will fall out of your seat, laughing. Trust me. If it happened to me, then it can happen to you.

Being different is impressive, and this film shows us how “distinction” is a powerful notion. When Sammy becomes recognized for his comedic talents, he decides to quit because he knows that his former fellow Goodfellas will be able to wack him so that he can’t testify. But do you know what happens? The people of the town speak up and tell him how important his comedy and his dynamic personality has positively influenced their lives. How remarkable is that?

A Stand Up Guy is genuinely an entertaining film full of laughs that will teach you to stay true to yourself and to make the best of every situation in life. Just remember, your unique self will always have a huge impact on someone else.

So, why be anyone but yourself?

Remember,

“The Zos Knows”

-David Zosel 

If you want to support my writing and for me to be able to create more content you can make a donation here: Venmo